


I'm Sorry, but I must Kill you

by sleeplessnbroke



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Inspired By Tumblr, JaeYong - Freeform, M/M, Perhaps Some Smut, Real World Issues, Romance, SM rookies hairstyles for all of them, Slow Build, i give them all different ages, i shall go down with this ship, idk this is my first attempt at smut so we'll see, maybe thriller, mercenary au, will slowly add more characters later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-15
Updated: 2017-08-27
Packaged: 2018-12-15 22:15:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 16,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11815269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sleeplessnbroke/pseuds/sleeplessnbroke
Summary: Don't want to give away too many spoilers.Life of a refugee is tough. Young Jaehyun would have never anticipated his life to undergo the events that have shaped him into the man he is now. Escaping the North Korean regime, his home, and other traumatic obstacles, the Jungs are now working hard to earn their right to live in South Korea and start over fresh.However, will the North Korean regime permit such treason to be overlooked? will they continue to allow their fugitives with their newly profound sense of free speech to criticize the sovereignty? will the Jungs really be safe from danger?An unknown is out there, deployed by the government, tasked by them, follows orders, lives in the shadows. An unknown.





	1. Preview

**Author's Note:**

> Hello hi annyeonghaseyo whaazahhhhh!!!  
> this is my first fanfiction ever written.  
> I have a lot to learn about writing a good fic.  
> so plz I'm open to constructive criticism.  
> Also, this is fictional work inspired by an article of Yeonmi Park who actually fled from North Korea. You can check it out on Telegraph.co.uk. Characters obviously are not mine and everything here is fictional so anything that happens in this story which somehow mirrors real life events is purely coincidental. idk how to put a proper disclaimer lol.

 

> ** Prolgue **
> 
> * * *
> 
> Flashes of cameras, the unanimous flurry of voices, questions, news stations have gathered around the police officers and other investigators standing outside the police station of Seoul. Who would have predicted this chaotic conferance, on a nice sunny day like this...
> 
> ''Is it true that Jung Jaehyun is held at captivity of the north Korean base, or his whereabouts are still uncomfirmed?'', said as one of the female news correspondants stood up and spoke. ''Investigators are still looking into his disapperance, we have certain evidance that points to Jaehyun must most probably still be here in South Korea, althought his current whereabouts are unclear'', ''Do you think that the Kim jong un's government would have been behind this, or another suspect with a different motive?'' , ''That is yet to be indentified'', ''How will you plan your enforcements in order to protect an ex-fugitive?''
> 
> Taeil was getting fustrated, all these questions, releasing a statement to the press was all they required to do for the time being, yet he could not ignore the media's constant interrogation. At this point, he rather interrogate other potential suspects and follow on promising leads to actual find Jaehyun. In a calm and anger controlled manner, he replied, ''Regardless of what he was, he is now a South Korean citizen and we will take full measures if we need to in order to protect him. As Seoul's national police, it is a rightful duty to protect our citizens and we will make sure to utilize all our resources to serve that purpose''. Another reported ejected, ''Given a case of now, what do you think, officer Moon, are the chances of Jaehyun still being alive?''. Taeil froze. This thought always ran chills down this spine. Once again, feigning calmness amidst the storm, ''...no more comment...''
> 
> The chaos once again rumbles and the police officers push their way to return back inside the station. Some are still out helping to prevent rogue reporters from barging in and breaking up the crowd. Taeil feels numb. Like everything around him is a motion of blur and noise, while he is left in thoughts alone, that one question resonating, constantly echoing in the cervices of his mind. .... _'Jaehyun still be alive?'_
> 
> He has to find him. Needs to get him back. He cannot believe himself. How could he have been so careless? He should have checked on him more. Spared some time for him, despite being backed up with a lot of work. Taeil was beating himself up once again. 
> 
> ''Stop it already, I know you feel like you're the one to blame for all this but you know all to well that it's not. The way Jaehyun was going about his life, this was bound to happen.'' The voice of fellow comrade broke Taeil's trail of thought. An officer with bunny front tooth and a slim frame spoke from his desk, eyeing Taeil closely as he walked past by. Officer Kim Doyoung. Aged 30, a year younger to Taeil, who is 31, but still one of his most trusted colleague. ''well... It was my job to stop it from happening in the first place...The only way I'll stop blaming myself is when I actually find Jaehyun....alive atleast''. A moment of silence before Doyoung replied, ''Then we best get to it'', averting his eyes back to files spilled across his desk. They were shrouded by the sounds of footsteps, phones ringing, and distant murmurs. Taeil walked back to his desk. He had his work cut from him and was determined at the task at hand. Doyoung as well decided to help out in this case since it's pretty big on making headlines. Subtly, he was concerned about Taeil. He wanted him revert back to non-stressed-out Taeil. But being apart of the police force is to be stressed out anyway...but to this extent??? Doyoung knew how badly this particular case affeced him, given his relationship with Jaehyun was close. Moreover, Doyoung also worries about Jaehyun equally. After all he's been through, he cannot go back. He cannot die. He already went through so much...

 


	2. I feel eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im sorry if there are any spelling or grammatical errors.  
> Really dont got the time to proof read.  
> Im actaully just preparing to enter uni this month so things are hectic.

**I Feel eyes**

* * *

 

 

Beep Beep! Beep Beep! Beep be... and silence.

Slowly cracking opening his eyelids that were heavily perpetuated with good night’s sleep, slowly starting to focus his blurry view, as he can see sunlight glowing through his translucent white blinds, and the potted plants under it showing off their ever lushes green, contrasting to the gentle turquoise paint on the wall. Once fully awake, Jaehyun felt it, felt his head comfortably against his pillow, the comforter coddled up around him like a burrito and the cool breeze from the air conditioning along with its monotone sounds. _Peace_. It was all too perfect. Maybe too perfect to spend it as a lazy day, but Jaehyun knows he has places to be, things to do. It took all his will power to get out of bed, his head felt heavy as if gravity was the battling against him right now. Fail. Jaehyun dropped down onto his bed, face sinking into the softness of his pillow. ‘’Uggggghhhhhhhh’’, Jaehyun groaned out loud, as if departing from his precious bed was the most difficult task in the world. ‘OK JAEHYUN, you can do this. C’mon Just one more push’. Like a push-up, He successfully sat up and took in his surroundings for a moment. He glanced at his digital alarm clock by his bed side. ‘’Alright, 6: 13 am. I can make it on time’’, Jaehyun spoke to himself and got out his sheets and proceeded his morning ritual of freshening up.

He had class at 7:45 am. That gave him more than plenty time to cook up a quick egg sandwich, coffee and left over rice from last night. Since it was a bit chilly outside, He wore a plain white V- neck shirt, tucked into light beige pants, along with black loafers and finally, to top it off, a grayish indigo semi-formal blazer. Jaehyun wanted to appear smart and presentable for today. He styled and parted his hair, so the majority of his strands were pushed to his left. Yeri once told him that he looked princely with that hairdo and it has been his go to hair style to make a good impression ever since. He grabbed his brown canvas side bag and headed out to the train station. Luckily for Jaehyun, he managed to rent a small affordable apartment just 7 minutes away from the train station. It was appreciably convenient.

Just on the route to the station, Jaehyun already receives glances and stares from strangers. Few meters away, a bunch of high school girls giggled amongst themselves as Jaehyun looked their direction and spared a small smile. Jaehyun didn’t mind all this attention, aside from his handsome looks, he was also kind of a mini celebrity. Time to time, he would get stopped and recognized on the streets and restaurants. Sometimes people would mistake him as an idol or a model, and try to get a picture. However, his fame was attained in an unconventional way. His fame arose from tragedy. Jaehyun was unsettled by this, is either known as a victim or a survivor or what not, but at least he got a chance to share his traumatic experiences across a larger mass. He was able to shed light on the terrors he and his family faced. His past was dark, but he still faces guilt over his current lifestyle now, as there are still so many people left back behind, still in darkness, his ‘’home’’ as he would have liked to call it.

As he reached his platform and waited for his train, he took out his pendant locket hidden under his shirt, unlocked it, revealing a clock. It was small, old and silver. It was actually supposed to be a pocket watch but it was so worn out, that Jaehyun took it upon himself to make it into a necklace, which he would sometimes carry around in his pocket when he had the chance. He took out the necklace from around his neck and gazed at the watch. It was his father’s gift to him. It didn’t look fancy nor did it appear branded but it was as classy as an old antique. This was probably centuries years old but Jaehyun had seen his dad carrying this around while he was alive and thriving. He assumes this was carried around in his family for generations but he doesn’t know much about it. He’s not sure whether this was given to him as an heirloom or as a parting gift, either way, his own dad had entrusted this to Jaehyun right before fleeing North Korea. That’s the last encounter he remembers having with him.

‘Snap’. Jaehyun quickly whipped his head up and inspected his surroundings right to left. He thought he heard the small sound of a shutter although he was unsure. There were quite a number of people around him as it would be packed at morning’s rush hour. Jaehyun felt uncomfortable. The thought of taking secret pictures of someone else, considering it was very much a criminal offense and God knows what the culprit can do with your identity, sent a shiver down his core. He stuffed the watch in his pants pockets, ‘That’s it. I NEED to invest in a facemask or something. Maybe I need to buy more caps also. I’ll put those on my list’. Just as he thought more, he heard more sounds of camera snapping and quickly turned around to look for the source. Three girls altogether invested in their own selfie session. ‘Oh… Huh well…’, Jaehyun turned back to face the platform only to be startled by the speeding train that whooshes past him, surprising him as he did not hear the train’s arrival announcement nor did he hear it approach. Hm, must have been too lost in thoughts he concluded. As the train passes, he sees his himself on it’s windows and sees the reflection of the girls behind him, looking through their gallery perhaps. He observes them and the rest of the crowd and back at the girls through the train’s reflective windows until it slowly decelerates and halts. ‘ _Was is really them?’…_

As the door open, people bustle in and out and Jaehyun immediately gets on and heads to his destination. He arrives at his university on time and manages to spare 10 minutes before the class starts. He gets himself adjusted in his seat and unloads his bag free from the weight of his laptop. Jaehyun was admitted in a good university and just started his third year. He majored in media and criminology. He had some amount of experience in media and gotten a taste of what it’s like before even starting university and feels like he could fit perfectly into that stream. Taking criminology was to abide with his overbearing urge of seeking justice and learning more about human rights. He is unsure what he really wants his future occupation to be, maybe a journalist or an activist. He feels he could be anything really, his choices are limitless and he can change his mind and do whatever he wants. He wouldn’t have felt this way if he was still stuck back home.  He would have a different life if he was still back there. ‘’Yo Jae!’’, suddenly sat next to him was a tall figure with dark brown hair and a deep voice. He wore a denim Jackets with jeans. Classic and carefree.

‘’Looking sharp today, are you going to the studio?’’, Johnny asked.

‘’Yeah, I have a talk show scheduled for later with strong heart’’, Jaehyun replied nonchalantly.

‘’DUDE. OH, MY GOD, YOU’RE GONNA MEET KIM HYO-JIN TODAY?!?!’’,

‘’C’mon Johnny, you know I had this scheduled for months now, I even told you about it the day I got it’’,

‘’Oh yeah sorry, I knew about it but I just forgot about the day you were going to be on it. Completed slipped my mind bro. Is it going to be live?’’

‘’Yep’’

‘’I see, good luck man, you’ll do fine’’

Jaehyun sighed at that. After University, he’s headed straight to the SBS studio for a live interview on strong heart, a show where people come in, share their emotional stories and feelings, in hopes to make people cry or sympathize. This show profits off the angst, their ratings literally relying on tears. Jaehyun’s story fits perfectly for the requirements to be starring on this talk show. He’s been in several interviews and broadcasts to tell his story over the last 4 years. It has been a long time since he’s been on one and does not mind retelling his story, in order to remind people about the atrocities of the government, how lucky the people of the south are, how there were geographically the closest to this brutal power and how dangerous it was. At this point, Jaehyun’s tears are dried up, although he still feels a sting of pain at the recollection of his memories, he feels like he has come to terms with his past and has accepted it. But the anger still seethes. The flame that burned ever so bright never seems to extinguish. He will continue to retaliate against the Northern regime, continue to use the media, his education and freedom to his advantage.

‘’Hey how’s your book coming along?’’, Johnny asked abruptly.

‘’Oh uh… yeah, it’s going fine, I recently finished one of my chapters but work seems to be slowing the process of starting a new one.’’

‘’cool. Can I check it?’’

‘’Yeah sure’’, Jaehyun opened one of his folders on his laptop and passed it to Johnny. Only a few people know about Jaehyun’s secret quest of writing his own autobiography. He only informed people he trusted like his sister for instance. Yeri was thrilled for him and was glad he took on this hobby which could allow him to leave his own mark in the world. Johnny was one of those people as well. Jaehyun found himself most relaxed at the American’s presence. He befriended him on the first year of university, both taking the same courses of course. There were a few foreigners in that class as most students were South Korean. Jaehyun at the time, who was still considered a refugee and a North Korean, found solace within the American, as Johnny posed to be quite accepting and friendly. As he got to know him more over the years, Jaehyun took a liking to him, as was more open minded and most of all, different. Johnny has been to many other places in this world, and Jaehyun himself learns a lot from his perspective, as well as English. Likewise, Johnny is quite fond of Jaehyun, viewing him as some sort of hero, although Jaehyun thinks that’s utterly ludicrous. Moreover, they’re both 22 years old and get along just fine.

After a few minutes of silence, ‘’hmm pretty good dude. When are you gonna publish it? I wanna know when I can get my own copy of your book’’

Jaehyun chuckled, ‘’Not so early. Maybe in my late adulthood stages of life, I guess. I need to accomplish something first. Make a change in this world. I can’t just write about my past and end it there. I still have more life to live’’

‘’ahh. I guess you have a point. You would have a pretty small book if you released an autobiography at the age of 22’’

‘’hahaha yeah’’

At the moment, their professor walked in and the whole class reverted to their seats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case the picture from above doesn't load here's a link to it https://ibb.co/ckH3e5  
> Credits to Earlcrimson on Tumblr for these sick edits <3  
> bcoz of her, I'm inspired to write this fic


	3. Say Cheese!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, Thanks to @earlcrimson on Tumblr for these dope pics and edits. Her blog inspired me to write this fic. Yall shud check her page out <3

**Say cheese!**

* * *

****

Somewhere in Seoul, in a dimly lit room, under a low ceiling lamp, sat a boy cladded with an oversized black hoodie. He wore a plain black cap, with black jeans and shoes. His face only lit by the brightness of his phone’s screen as he read the messages.

[Anonymous]: You have a month. Is that clear?  3:25am

[febreeze127]: Understood.  3:25am

With that, he switched off his phone and looked around the room. Shelves stacked with things and boxes, pictures strung along strings hung on walls and papers stacked neatly in piles of folders. Everything stilled in the darkness and serenity. A yawn followed the silence and the boy decided to rest. A simple steel bed with a mattress placed at the corner of the room. Sleep crept slowly and possessed him, temporarily caging him into a dreamless slumber.

 

Skip ahead in time. The boy found himself looking into one of the mirrors at the train station’s  public washrooms. Making sure sneaky strands of this platinum white hair don’t escape from the cap he was wearing. Once again, in his all black attire, this time with a face mask as well, stood and checked his appearance. It wasn’t odd to be fully covered here in Korea after all many people did it. He then went into one of the last stalls and started fixing his digital camera along his sleeve. It was a normal small sized camera and normally it would be hard to use it when you’re hiding it in your sleeve. But he practically has mastered the art of doing that. After a while, he leaves the stall and roams around the platform, searching for a face pictured and framed in his mind. He lingered there for almost an hour, scanning the crowd, walking in and out of the place, studying the area for security cameras and their potential blind spots. The security wasn’t tight, but pretty good for a standard train station in one of the least exciting places in Seoul in his opinion. Then he spotted him. His target. Oh, how his senses heightened up and all his undivided attention fixated upon his delicious little prey.

Jaehyun stood by the platform, waiting. The boy made his way close to his vicinity. He stood close by another guy with earphones on, too invested into his phone. He didn’t seem to notice him by. Good. He lifted his arm, hand at head level, camera in position and concealed. “Snap”, Jaehyun reacted. His eyes widened at that, quickly he darted his hand near his face which made him look like he was adjusting his hoodie and face mask, casting his eyes to the floor. ‘Shit. How did he hear that?’ the boy thought while hoping he wouldn’t come off as suspicious. Several seconds later, He lifted his gaze to get a glimpse of him, he seemed to go back to normal. He must have skipped over him, as he didn’t appear to be holding anything in his hand. As he got on the train, he followed, keeping careful distance. He followed him all the way to his university, Jaehyun being completely oblivious of this stranger in all black attire casually tailing him. He stopped when he saw him enter the gates.

This was about his first-time trailing Jaehyun’s outside his apartment complex. He needed to study his routine around the Seongdong-gu district. He would wonder around his neighborhood, studying the buildings and area. Jaehyun lived close by Seoul’s third largest forest and bit further away from the Han River. He got a couple of pictures of him, out and about those places, although most of them tend to be restaurants and food shops. Geez this guy really likes to dine huh. Now he’s getting somewhere outside his domestic life. He hasn’t really infiltrated his home yet, but that can wait till later.

Two weeks back, He was sent a letter. He was sitting in his apartment when he opened it. It was a letter from Sergeant Chihun. It was simple and short.

**Target: Jung Yoon-Oh**

**Mission: Eliminate Target**

**Reward: 1 billion Won**

The price pinned on this one was high. Enough to get him curious and motivated. He researches, not knowing much about Jaehyun. After two days of intense groundwork, he receives more letters, this time of necessary required documents needed for this mission, like the lease for his new temporary location, fake ID’s to get into certain places, new SIM card for his phone, fresh memory chips, train ticket, maps and other confidential information that would come in handy over there. This time it wasn’t the sergeant who sent it to him, but his confederate, Yuta Nakamoto, Japanese recruit, simply doing his job of aiding missions to succeed. Nobody knows where Yuta stays, but he sort of an undercover information broker that works for the North. He gains access to unreachable places and sites, pre-books and rents under fake names, covers illegal digital tracks so no one can suspect anything. Basically, the guy is a whole lot of shady but he’s an associate he has known for the longest time. Perhaps the only person he can call a ‘friend’ at least. Yuta always helps him out, that’s his job though, helping mercenaries and spies. speeding up the dirty work, as he would say it.

He had his work cut out for him. A long journey to Seoul by train and a fairly long bus ride to an old house. The land lady there was expecting him, “Ahh, you must be Taeyong-ssi, your room is ready my boy”, she said in her sweet old lady voice. A short form of gratitude was exchanged and the woman led him into the house. The room he had was small but bearable, equipped with a functioning washroom and a tiny kitchen. While inspecting, he noticed a small hatch on the floor and bent down to open it. “Oh, that’s the basement. It’s not exactly furnished or clean but you can use it as extra storage space if you want”. “Thank you. I think I will check it out now”, Taeyong replied. He walked down the stairs that led to a dusty, dimly lit space that smelt of damp air. It was a bit more spacious than his room on top. ‘Good job Yuta’, he always knew to trust him. This explains why he was hired. As he walked back up, the woman gave him the keys and some pointers about the house and the neighborhood.

“So tell me a bit about yourself. Where have you come from?”

“Samchok”, Taeyong lied

“I see… and how old are you?”

“24”, he answered curtly,

“Not a very talkative boy aren’t you”, the old lady chuckled, her eyes wrinkled as she smiled

Taeyong just smiled back and scratched the back of his neck

“What about your parents?”

Taeyong then looked back at her awkwardly, “Oh.. uh.. They died when I was a child. I was raised in the orphanage”, he lied once again.

She gasped, “Oh I’m so sorry about that. Please, whenever you need something dear, don’t hesitate to knock my door”, her eyes softened with worry.

“Ahh no, it’s okay. Thank you ma'am”, he said, flashing a cute smile that woos so many hearts.

“Well alright I shall leave you be now, so you can settle in comfortably”

After her departure, Taeyong began to set up his things. He made the basement his lair which contained all the things he needed for his business, while his clothes and other basic necessities were kept upstairs. But not before cleaning the whole place from top to bottom. His inner neat freak powered him through vigorous scrubbings the floors, dusting the surfaces and intoxicating the air with febreeze. He disinfected almost every inch of his new temporary home and all it took was a day. He surprised himself, after all that traveling, he was still able to tidy up, although his living quarters were quite small, to begin with.

“DING!” a new message alerted him on his phone. He picked it up from the kitchen counter and sat on the floor of his room. It was a notification from this app Yuta instructed him to download beforehand. It was probably an app he created by himself, It was called NCT, God only knows what that stands for. He opened the notification that led him into the app.

[Message from Yakisoba Prince]

[Yakisoba Prince]: Hey maN! How do you like your new place??? ;DDD  10:36 pm

[febreeze127]: Hate to say it, but you picked a good spot   10:37 pm

[febreeze127]: Wait. Febreeze127????? Why??? What does that even mean???? How did it even become this?   10:37 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: lolz calm down I just hacked your account geez. Febreeze comes from the traumatic memories I had living with you. 127 is the longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates of Seoul where you're currently at. That’s it.  10:38 pm

[febreeze127]: Why would you even want to hack me?   10:38 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: meh. I was bored. But ur right tho, you don’t got shit to hack. So I just ended up changing ur username. Knowing you, you’d prolly come up with some lame ass name like Fabio or yellow or some shit like that.  10:39 pm

[febreeze127]: I would have just used my initials   10:39 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: nAAHHH MAN. Whenever you deal with things online, ALWAYS USE ALIASES. 10:39 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: AND INCOGNITO TABS.  10:39 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: AND VPN!!!!1!!!  10:39 pm

[febreeze127]: ok. I get it.  10:39 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: Okay listen up. This will now be you’re medium of communication with us. Your mission this time is high risked and very important. You should be careful. If sergeant wants to communicate with you, he’ll do it from here. Refrain from using real names online. Whenever you get a message on this app, you are required to reply within 6 hours after receiving it. If failed to do so, we get alerted and measures will be taken accordingly. Is that clear?  10:40 pm

[febreeze127]: What kind of measures?  10:40 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: It best if you try not to find out  10:40 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: Trust me…   10:40 pm

[febreeze127]: fine. Understood.  10:40 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: Good.  10:40 pm

[Yakisoba Prince]: AnYwAy cAtCh yA lAtErZzzZ bRUh 10:40 pm

[Yakisoba Prince logged out]

Taeyong sighed. He doesn’t know how he gets along with this guy. He’s too different from him. Like he’s from another planet. Well…Technically he is from another country though. Maybe Taeyong has adapted to his personality after enduring him for 10 years. He still recalls his first encounter with the indomitable foreign boy.

“I CALL DIBS FOR TOP BUNK”, the boy hurriedly ran and climbed the ladder to his aforementioned destination. Taeyong just stared dumb folded at the strange and energetic boy. He poked his head from above and asked Taeyong who was now sitting on his own bunk.

“I’m Yuta Nakamoto by the way. I’m from Japan. 8 years old. What about you?”

“Lee Taeyong. South Korean. Also 8”

“When’s your birthday?”

“July 1st”

“AWWH MAN, I was hoping to be your hyung!!! But hey don’t try to boss me around!!”

“uh…. Sure….”

Taeyong smiles at that memory. He wonders how he spoke proper Korean and Japanese at such a young age. But he figured he was just too smart. That would explain why he is where he is today. Yuta used to look so cute as a kid. Yeah, extra emphasize on ‘used to’. They both were recruited for combat training, but of course, Sergeant Chihun saw potential in Yuta and utilized his true skills for something else. Something much more menacing. Taeyong doesn’t know how difficult Yuta’s role is compared to his, but he has a certain gist of it. Although he perceives himself to be absolutely crucial and has even proved himself so many times. Taeyong does admire him a bit, but would never admit nor dwell upon that. The last thing he wants to do is feed Yuta's ego.

Eventually, Taeyong calls it a day and decides to rest so he can prepare his next steps for tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol I can't handle seriousness throughout the story okay. I added some humor aka Yuta to the story coz I'm not boring. I don't think I can live with myself if my own fic bores me out lol.   
> Also just putting this out there, but I love comments <3


	4. What is freedom?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of Jaehyun's back story.

**What is freedom?**

* * *

 

****

 

****

People were running left to right, right to left, fixing lights and the stage sets. Cameramen and directors conversing amongst themselves, discussing the upcoming broadcast. Jaehyun was currently in the changing room, sitting on the makeup chair, a couple of noonas fixing up his makeup and adjusting his hair. He was a tad bit nervous because he hasn’t gone public in a long time. Suddenly a hand grabbed his shoulder from the back and Jaehyun startled, looking back. It was one of the main hosts for strong heart, Lee Dong-wook. “So are you ready Jaehyun-ah?” he spoke with a reassuring smile. Jaehyun simply nodded, letting out a shaky breath and turning back to see the reflection on the dressing table opposite him, “Yeah, I’m ready”. “Good. I’m not sure how often you’ve done this, but don’t let the pressure get to you. At first, it’s difficult in front of a live studio audience but soon you get used to it”, Dong-wook said firmly. “Thank you. I’ll do my best”, Jaehyun replied feeling more composed.

“GOING LIVE IN 20 MINUTES, BRING IN THE STUDIO AUDIENCE!” someone blared through the megaphone speakers, echoing throughout the studio. Jaehyun was already on set and was introduced to everyone, getting to speak with them before the broadcasting started.

“Listen Jaehyun-ah, don’t be afraid to bring out the heart breaking stuff alright! You don’t have to sugar coat or censor the facts” said the other main co-host, Shin Dong-yup.

“I don’t plan to” Jaehyun replied,

“You must be a very brave boy, after all escaping from North Korea is such a serious matter” one of the female guests spoke up to him.

“It might seem brave but it was the most terrifying time of my life, I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone. I don’t think I’m brave, but there were others who were. Those who helped me through those tough times were ten times much braver than I could ever hope to be” Jaehyun replied solemnly. He had so many people who came to his mind when he said that.

“LIVE IN 3 MINUTES” another unknown voice interrupted through the megaphone.

“EVERYONE! FIGHTING!!” Dong-wook said, holding his fist up to the air, motioning everyone for good luck.

Jaehyun sat by the guest sofa and scanned the audience for a moment. There mostly seemed to be women of different ages, few men here and there. They weren’t very far away from the stage but weren’t very close either to see proper facial features, just distant faces mixed in a crowd of people. As he raked through the crowd, he unexpectedly caught two large eyes staring back at him, making brief eye contact with them. “Jaehyun wear your mic properly on your collar” Jaehyun turned to the attendant talking to him. “Oh uh ok yes” he replied distractingly and looked back to see the person who caught his attention. Gone. ‘What? how? Weren’t they just there?’ it only had been a second that Jaehyun had his back turned towards the audience. 'Hmm, maybe that person carried along and went somewhere else.'

“GOING LIVE IN 5…4…..3…..2….1….”

The start of the show went smoothly, everyone made their introductions and banter. Now it had come to that segment of the show where Jaehyun had to feature mainly.

“Today we have Jung Jaehyun, a former refugee who escaped the harsh life in North Korea with his older sister, and now has re-established a new life here in Seoul. Jaehyun-ssi, please do share with us some of your experiences back there.” Dong-yup spoke.

“Well, where do I start…? Let’s start with my family. Not everyone was wealthy but my family had a decent income, able to sustain all of us. My father owned a large farm. He hired and gave jobs to many. However, the famine threatened his business and he sensed he would soon be facing bankruptcy. If things came to the worse, he wouldn’t be able to support us and we would be forced to be evicted. But my father didn’t allow it. Instead, he got involved in the underground business and the black market, doing trading and selling. It was illegal and I wasn’t aware because I was quite young. But things went steadily from then on, his farm also recovered after a long time and he was earning a good amount of profit. He carried on like that for at least 13 years.”

“Your father must have been working very hard to provide a secure life for his family. Especially to be going on for this long period of time in secrecy, that’s quite impressive.”

“He was a hardworking man yes. During that time, I had an older cousin brother, he moved in with us when his parents passed away. We all loved each other like family, however, he was reckless. He would come home drunk many times and my family would worry immensely for him as drinking alcohol was illegal. He had been scolded several times and even beaten because he just would not listen. He was risking everything for my father and he actually considered sending him away to a disciplinary school or the military. Everyone thought of him as a rebel, a good for nothing delinquent, waste of space in society. But, I thought he was different. We shared the same bedroom so I spent countless nights with my cousin brother, chatting with him till way past our bedtime, hours no end, staying up in the dark room and sitting by the window while the moon slightly brightened up our room. All I saw was a carefree soul, mind broader than the horizons, endless ideas and unique thoughts, a free spirit suffocating under the brainwashing of the regime. He opened my eyes to newer things I would have never known.”

“Could you perhaps give us an example of anything he introduced to you?”

“He somehow accessed the world wide web which wasn’t influenced by anything. Just the non-manipulated net. I discovered social sites and media platforms such as YouTube. We even managed to face time a Korean living in the U.S. and he really helped me wake up and smell the utter bullshit that I was forced to live in.”

“What did your cousin brother hope to achieve with all his ‘rebelling’?”

“He……He only wanted to taste freedom…”

“I see. Then what went wrong?”

“My father told him he was going to be sent to boarding school and I think that’s when he lost it. He stormed out the house absolutely furious that even I couldn’t have calmed him down. We prayed nothing would have happened to him but it seemed that those prayers went unanswered. The police had arrived at our doorstep issuing a warrant against him, charging him with consuming alcohol, stealing and driving a car of a state official, while being intoxicated and additionally crashing it. The fine my father had pay for this was large, but what was worse, the punishment that bestowed upon my cousin. Execution.”

“How was he executed?”

Jaehyun took a long breath before answering. It was a common form of capital punishment. Jaehyun was only 14 when we witnessed this. His cousin brother, his closest mate, walking up the wooden stage, hands cuffed behind his back. A rope dangling in the air and soldiers accompanying him to the dreaded podium. All Jaehyun could do was watch, he could hear his mother wailing and Yeri trying to hold her up from collapsing straight on to the ground, people of the village and town, even small children standing there bearing witness to the scene unfolding. His father was nowhere in sight, Jaehyun could probably guess he was blaming himself for this. His heart wrenched and squeezed in all the wrong sides, as he watched the rope encircle his neck. ‘Stop it’. His brother was already standing on the podium tall. ‘No stop it.' The soldiers fastening the knot tightly and the rigid ropes already scraping red marks on his throat. ‘No, wait, this is all wrong…’ Jaehyun was starting to feel disorientated and sick. “Any last words?” said a soldier. “I HOPE ONE DAY MY PEOPLE WILL BREAK FREE FROM THIS SICK CONTROL AND PURSUE THE FREEDOM WE DESERVE”, he yelled out as if patriotically. The executioner stood up and started taking out the podium he was standing on. “NO STOP!!” Too late. Jaehyun tried to climb up the stage but the soldiers pushed him back, “NO PLEASE STOP STOP!!!” Jaehyun begged and screamed. He could see his brother struggling for air, twisting his body and kicking his feet. The noises that erupted from him slowly died, along with the fruitless struggle and then went limp. Jaehyun froze, stopped breathing altogether as he watched the corpse sway in air and it seemed like time stood still to capture the moment, all other noises turning white. A hand grabbed Jaehyun’s collar and pulled him up and he didn’t even realize when he got on the ground. It was Yeri, pulling him away from the scene. Eyes burning red, tears coated her cheeks and her voice cracking on every note, “Yoonoh we have to go!” He turned back last time to see them taking down the body and he finally cracked. Broke down in a fit of sobs while running away with Yeri. Jaehyun truly wished things wouldn’t have escalated this way…

“He was publicly hung to death in front of many commoners including a good amount of children”

“God! That’s horrible!”

“It was. After that whole incident, the police weren’t going easy on my family, state officials claiming we needed to compensate for the offense committed. With the authorities breathing down my father’s neck, his secret business got weak and eventually, he was caught. He was sentenced 100 years in jail. But he did not blame this on my deceased cousin though. None of us did. Somehow, he knew this was bound to happen regardless.”

“The punishments and crimes committed by your brother and father are at opposite ends of the spectrum! I’m deeply sorry Jaehyun, but I am just appalled at the fact that drinking, stealing and vandalism sums up to death row, while illegal trafficking equals to jail time! It’s absurd”

“I didn’t understand at first but I think it was because my father was a big businessman and they saw him as vital. So they could keep him alive while slowly taking over his business and livelihood. They also wanted to make an example out of my brother. To prove their power. My father returned home after 3 years though. He aged considerably, but he wasn’t himself anymore. We figured they had sent him back because, after all those years of torture, he looked like he was in a vegetative state, no longer responsive and much closer to death.”

Jaehyun watched his father throughout those weeks, he was different. It was like living with a breathing corpse sitting amongst them. He has lost weight greatly, reduced to skin and bones. He barely could stand without help, let alone walk. They must have starved him there. But his mental state was beyond help’s reach. The emotional toll this entire ordeal took on his father drove him into silent insanity. One day, at the dinner table, this father finally broke his silence for the first time after returning home. “Leave this place”. Everyone at the table turned to look at him, pausing their dinner ministrations, all in shock. “What? Dear what are you saying?” his mother spoke up. “You need to escape this country. Go to China. Go anywhere. Far from this place. It’s our only hope for a better life. I have connections that would help you all to leave without getting caught.”, “Dear, what about you?”, “I will remain here, my time is close to ending, I’m afraid I will only slow you down”. Yeri then spoke up unassertively after a short moment of silence, “Father, are you sure about this?” And his father beamed her with the warmest smile she hadn’t seen in ages, “Yes my daughter. It’s for the best for all of us.”

“We had left our father behind to expire peacefully in his home country. He insisted us to leave before he died. In my heart, I hope he didn’t feel too much of pain from his lonesome death.”

“I’m so sorry to hear that. Were there also other cruel occasions you have encountered back there?”

“Once there was a woman, she was caught harboring an American film. She was our neighbor and once I went over to her place to play with her children while she put it on her television. That was the first time I saw a television kiss scene. I was awestruck, never had I ever seen such a movie before.”

Jaehyun still recalls how the male protagonist held the actresses' face, holding her jaw, staring into her eyes deeply with love and affection. He had never seen such a thing in real life, not even around his own parents! They got closer and kissed passionately, eyes fluttering close and background music intensifying romantically. That’s where Jaehyun learned what a kiss is. From then onwards, he had fantasized about it, dreaming about the day he could kiss the one he loves.

“An anonymous exposed her small secret and then the police force raided her house. She was publicly beaten and stoned to death, while her kids could do nothing but watch and cry. I was with them throughout.”

The audience gasped and one woman in the crowd silently wept. She must have been a parent, putting herself in his father’s or neighbor’s shoes, Jaehyun thought. Or maybe she actually feels sympathy and pity for the people doing everyday things which they weren’t even allowed to do.’

“That’s all the time we have for today, thank you Jaehyun-ssi for coming on our show today and sharing your story. Is there anything else you would like to say?”

Jaehyun now looked straight into one of the camera’s making sure to hold eye contact with the lens a.k.a. the audience beyond the studio. “I condemn the Northern regime of their brutal acts that suppresses human rights. I hope one day Kim Jong-un would be cracked down and stop terrorizing the people of North Korea.”

“Thank you, everyone, who has tuned in tonight, we’ll see you again soon. Goodnight”

“3…..2…..1….. And clear!” one of the directors concluded from behind the cameras

“Good work Jaehyun, We’re glad you were with us today” Dong-yup said after the filming was done

“Thank you for having me.”

Soon Jaehyun headed to grab his things from the changing room and left the studio doors. Outside he was greeted by some people who were part of the live studio audience who were still waiting till late to speak to Jaehyun, up close and personal. “Oppa~~ you are seriously so brave in my eyes,” one of the girls remarked. Jaehyun didn’t know how to exactly respond to this, “I’m honored you think of me this way, but I-”, “Say oppa~ are you by any chance single?” Jaehyun did not dislike the girl for popping such a question, instead, he admired her courage for asking in the first place. Many people would often shy away. He had deep respect for all women despite never being with one. All his life he had mostly known his mother and sister only. He gave her a warm small smile and said, “Thank you for considering me, but I don’t think I can make you happy. I am sincerely sorry. Really. I’m sure you are a precious girl, but you deserve a guy who’s much surer than I am.” “Awh~ that’s tragic, not getting a date out of you” she jokingly whines and Jaehyun chuckled at that. A while later, he bid his farewells to the people surrounding him and walks away towards his home, completely oblivious of the eyes staring onto his back. The same big doe eyes he had caught in the studio before, carefully hiding in the shadows of the building. He had watched Jaehyun conversing with the girl almost cheerfully and later retreating to the direction of the train stations. “Snap”. Another shot capturing the handsome Jung Jaehyun, flirting his way out the crowd of girls and towards his home alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yall cud tweet me on twitter.   
> idc tweet me anything random lol i dont mind anything haha


	5. Troubled stake out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit long i guess.

**Troubled Stake out**

* * *

 

****

 

When Taeyong did his homework before arriving in Seoul, he found out Jaehyun was scheduled for strong heart on this day too. He contacted Yuta to somehow help him get access to the SBS studio and as always, Yuta never ceases to surprise. Taeyong expected him to be an undercover trainee or temp, but what he got, was ‘live audience member’, which was perfect! He didn’t have to speak to anyone and just sit comfortably while observing the show.

After coming back from Jaehyun’s university, Taeyong assumed the boy would be at the studio around 7 pm, so he went back to his own place, developed his latest photo and hung it on the wall strings. He then proceeded to jot down today’s short events in a separate folder labeled “Yoonoh”. He did this with all his missions, keeping personal track of every day, almost like a diary, which he would burn once the missions were complete. He thought it was pretty useful to backtrack and recount his steps, so he could strategize, predict scenarios and various outcomes, formulate the most likely successful plan, based upon his notes taken from his daily stalking. This whole task was time sensitive and had a lot of money at stake. He had to think of a way to take down Jaehyun, without any inference or suspicion. It had been almost one and a half weeks of stalking him, so he had to work fast. However, he was used to this pressure. He had been on so many missions, taken many lives, but this has to be his first assignment which had the shortest deadline. He didn’t understand why sergeant wanted Jaehyun dead so fast, but it doesn’t matter, either way, a mercenary’s job is to do the job, no questions asked.

He decided to dress up for the upcoming venture, not going in all-black this time. He didn’t want to stand out but still wanted to conceal. He decides on a long white sleeved collar shirt with a dark blue jacket and black jeans. He covered his hair with a black beanie and applied gel to his white hair, so it’s all hidden under the fabric. He had still some time to kill and decide to go over Jaehyun’s… or should he say Yoonoh’s file again. He didn’t have much data to work with but as of now, he thought the best way was to get Jaehyun in a secluded place and murder him clean with maybe…hmm… How should I take him down? Taeyong thought. He stood up from his table and went savaging through the shelves of boxes. One box wasn’t opened yet, which is the one he was searching for. He grabbed the cutter and opened the box which revealed some of Taeyong’s weapons he had bought over, all specialised for assassination purposes. There were some vials of poisons, which Taeyong immediately rejected, it wasn’t the safest route for him to go with those. He had a couple of gas bombs and other chemicals such as chloroform, now those could come in handy. ‘Let’s see which one of these babies wou-’, his eyes caught on the shiny metal object. He pulled it out, a classic Springfield Armoury hand gun, Taeyong’s most ideal weapon of choice. ‘I wonder if a clean shot through the head will do…’ Taeyong decided he’ll stick with this plan for now, but carrying a gun around at this time will be risking too much. He also needed a better place to keep these arms, rather than boxes on shelves. There was a cupboard with a lock and he might as well make use of it. After lunch, he grabbed his studio pass, wallet, phone, keys and camera, and headed out.

Upon arrival, the live audience were still not let inside and had to wait for some time outside till they enabled access. He stood aside the crowd, until his ears perked up to a sound of a girl’s voice. It wasn’t her voice or face that drew Taeyong’s attention, but the context of conversation she was having with her friends. “Have you seen Jaehyun oppa in a suit? ‘Cause I did once outside church once. He looked so handsome like a star!”, “Hahaha jisoo I dare you to ask Jaehyun oppa out on a date”, “Actually I will! I’ll be lucky if he said yes!! But I wonder if he’s already dating someone else” Taeyong laughed at that in his head, biting his inner cheeks and lips to supress his smile. ‘No, he’s not got anyone like that in his life’ Taeyong could probably answer that for her after all the background search he had done on Jaehyun. But he resorted to keeping his mouth sealed, sticking to his policy of minimum contact. As desperately as Taeyong tried to maintain a low-profile, his unrealistic facial structure, sharp jawline and large obsidian eyes drew some amount of unnecessary attention. However he managed to throw off some of it by look as intimidating and cold, as possible. He avoided looking at people and vouched to stand in the least crowded area. Meanwhile, a security guard was roaming around checking for ID’s and stage passes. Taeyong wore the pass around his neck and then pulled out his wallet to take out his fake ID that Yuta issued for him. When the guard came up to him, he eyed his pass on his chest, “ID?” Taeyong gave it to him, the guard carefully eyes the picture and then back at his face, “Ji Hansol?” “Yes” “hmm okay, wait in line over there.” He pointed out to the growing line of people by the entrance who are all probably verified, while writing his ‘name’ on the list. Taeyong carefully took back his card while observing the distracted guard and then moving away. He stood in line and for the first time, he took a proper look at his fake ID,

** SOUTH KOREAN OFFICIAL IDENTIFICATION CARD **

****

**Name: Ji hansol**

**Nationality: South Korean**

**D.O.B: 21 / 11 / 1994**

**Occupation: University student**

**Area: Seongdong-gu district, Seoul**

 

Unbelievable, that was one of Taeyong’s old pictures when he was around 18 and Yuta somehow got his ruddy hands on it. He better memorizes his ID’s name and gets used to it. Then it hits Taeyong. ‘Shit. That guard.’ He didn’t expect him to take down names of the people. If anything happens to Jaehyun, the police can investigate the records here and search the people’s names from that list. Additionally, they’ll be recording the audience as well, capturing their faces. Shit, maybe being a temp or at least a fucking servant boy would have been better. Suddenly Taeyong’s position felt compromising. If they looked up Ji Hansol, first case scenario, he really exists but looks nothing like Taeyong. Caught. Second case scenario, Ji Hansol does not exist anywhere. Dead end. Third case scenario, Yuta takes responsibility for this whole mess and creates a fake Ji Hansol and put him on official records. But the police can also look to contact us, which would mean Taeyong would have to confront them as Ji Hansol and that also could go two ways. He either gets caught or not. Taeyong lets out the longest sigh and that’s when the doors open. The attendants were signaling the line he was in, to enter. ‘Okay. New plan. Stay but avoid cameras. Then steal list.’ This sounded much more assuring, but hell lot harder to do. As he entered, the audience seats and rows were like those in sports stadiums. Inclined so everyone’s face could be seen. ‘Shit’ Taeyong walked by the set, then he saw Jaehyun sitting on one of the sofas, wearing his same smart outfit that he wore this morning. At that very second when Taeyong was about to look away, Jaehyun turned, caught him with his eyes. Taeyong was caught off guard, he felt like a deer caught in headlights, ‘Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit’ Taeyong could not even break away from Jaehyun’s face ‘cause he was sort of shocked and unprepared. Normal people would normally brush this off and move on, but with Taeyong, It felt like Jaehyun had sensed Taeyong’s ill motives. Makes him really wonder, does he know anything?

Luckily, two seconds later, which felt like two minutes instead, an attendant stole Jaehyun’s attention away and Taeyong broke for a sprint. He asked one of the crew members with feigned feelings of emergency. “Excuse pleases! Could you tell me where the washroom is?? It’s very urgent!!” The guy pointed to a direction and Taeyong sprinted. He managed to find a lavatory and then started to relax after catching his breath. This is ridiculous, how does that boy manage to catch small things that go unnoticeable to normal human beings? First, the camera sounds and now this. It was as if he was indirectly mocking Taeyong’s stealth skills and that easily enraged him. ‘Okay calm down Lee Taeyong. You got this’ While catching his breath, he could hear the show's intro music starting to play. Taeyong figured the start might take a bit of time, so he decided to take this chance to roam backstage instead. If he ever misses the whole interview, it would be a waste coming here but there are bound to be some tapes of recording from today. I mean it's the modern age after all. 

He snuck backstage where people were too distracted to even notice his presence. ‘Okay security office, where are you?’ Taeyong entered a room, It had clothes stacked in hangers and makeup littered throughout the dressing tables. Yeah, he figured this was the wrong room and decided to leave until something familiar item caught his vision. Jaehyun’s bag. Just a normal backpack he carries around every day. This is would be the perfect time to snoop with nobody around. He unzipped his backpack and it didn’t have much except for books and other basic stuff. He pulled out Jaehyun’s wallet. Money, ID card, food vouchers, passport photographs, train card, business cards, OH! A STUDENT CARD!! Taeyong quickly snapped a picture of it and disposed the wallet back to how it originally was. He didn’t seem to have too much in his bag, just a very practical person, Taeyong feels that if Jaehyun weren’t his target, they may have gotten along pretty well, plus how can Taeyong deny the fact that he was also a food fanatic. But even if that was the case, Taeyong cannot have friends, his job requires him to keep minimum to no contact with people. Again, strong policy. He keeps Jaehyun’s bag pack in place as if it was untouched in the first place. As he was about to leave, he scanned the room and there it was. Security camera attached to the ceilings. ‘Tsk’ he responds in annoyance, guess he’ll ask Yuta to take care of that now. He leaves in search for the security office. As he wanders back stage, he was close to the curtains, on the other side of it, the talk show was going on and he peeked slightly through the narrow gaps in between. “Well. Where do I start…?” Jaehyun spoke and Taeyong stood there listening, momentarily forgetting about the list. Taeyong learned new things from Jaehyun today. Sure he knew life over there was cruel, but to hear his own victim’s point of view, was quite interesting. Taeyong stood there listening for more than half the time Jaehyun was speaking, he was just about to start narrating the story about his neighbour when a hand touched Taeyong’s back and he jumped. It was the same guard with the list, malice laced in his eyes and voice.

“What are you doing here sir?”

“Oh sorry, you see I was on my way to the washroom and I was searching here and I found one but it seems I got lost again”, Taeyong released a small giggle at the end as if he was actually innocent and genuinely got lost. The guard just eyed him questionably with a raised eye brow. “And-and Jaehyun’s story is very interesting. I didn’t want to miss it by walking back. I was going to after he was done though.” He tried again with his cute smile.

The guard let out a large sigh, “Sir, you have to go back to your seat. You are not allowed to be here. I would escort you, but I need do something else first because the show is about to end”  

Taeyong saw opportunity. “I don’t think I trust myself with directions. This place is really complicated. Could you… I mean if it’s not too much of a hassle, take me along with you? I mean I’ll follow you. And once you’re done you can escort me to the right place. Besides if the show is about to end, I don’t think I will be missing much then, so I don’t mind.”

The guard hesitated but then realised he didn’t have much time so he reluctantly agreed. Taeyong followed him through a maze of corridors, good thing he has an escort otherwise he would have never found the security office in time. The guard opened a room, where screens monitoring different rooms, were attached to the walls. There were at least 20 screens switched on, recording in real-time. ‘Shit the dressing room’ this might be a trap. But then later he proved himself wrong as a stroke of luck must have bestowed itself upon Taeyong, when the other guard in charge of monitoring was too engrossed solving a crossword puzzle. “Noticed anything fishy Tony?” “Nope.” Taeyong could only let out a small silent sigh of relief, standing by the door frame. That’s when he noticed the familiar list placed on the table, in front of the supposedly known ‘Tony’ the crossword guard. ‘How the fuck am I going to get that now?’ The first guard went over to the corner of the room, bending down to one of the lower cabinets to search for something.

“Hey, 8 letters word, worst crime committable. Any clue?” Tony spoke up, eyes still trained on the crossword

“Hmm. Killing? Oh wait that’s 7 letters. I don’t know man, you know I’m not the brightest at those. What about killings?” The first guard replied, still back facing the both of them.

“Nah doesn’t fit”

“How about massacre?”

“ehhh…. No. darn it”

Taeyong quickly speaks up, “Can I help?”

Tony took one glance at him and went back to his puzzle, “Yeah, sure”, he quickly seized the chance. Taeyong moved closer to Tony and closed in onto his personal space. He place his hand on the headrest of his chair and other against the surface of a smooth mahogany table. He moved his head closer to the book as if really analysing for any possible answers.

“Try violence” Taeyong suggests,

“Doesn’t fit”

Taeyong’s hand slowly inches to the list. Eyes moving back and forth from the first guard, to Tony, to the puzzle and repeat.

“Try butchery?”

“Hmm that can work”

He was only looking to buy some time and providing more distractions. He slowly folds the paper to a bearable size and swiftly slips it into his back pockets. Safe. Taeyong finally smirks.

“AH! Butchery wasn’t it”

“Oh then it must be homicide then,” Taeyong says easily with the brightest smile, as if he knew the answer all along,

“Homi- OH! It’s right! Why didn’t I think of that? Thanks kid!”

“It’s no problem at all” Taeyong replies with a devilish smirk and determined glint in his eyes.

“Hey Tony where are the gate keys?” The first guard said as he stood up,

“I kept them on top of the cupboard” Tony replied.

“Could you have not mentioned that in the first place?!” The first guard said in an irritated voice,

“Haha sorry Hangwu you should have asked first”

Taeyong was all too satisfied with himself and the obliviousness of these guards. The first guard retrieved the keys and escorted Taeyong to the live audience section. He said his thanks and watched the guard take leave. “That’s all the time we have for today, thank you Jaehyun-ssi for coming on our show today and sharing your story. Is there anything else you would like to say?” Taeyong was curious, almost blending in with the camera crew and audience, he stood almost near to one of the cameras.

Jaehyun turned towards his direction. Taeyong froze once again, but this time, it was the camera he was looking at, not him. He still couldn’t peel his eyes away from Jaehyun, he seems so captivating. “I condemn the Northern regime of their brutal acts that suppresses human rights. I hope one day Kim Jong-un would be cracked down and stop terrorizing the people of North Korea.”

‘Wow... No wonder why they wanted him dead this fast.’ Taeyong thought. He was too out spoken, he should have been dead a long time ago if he was always like this. To survive this long is really impressive. Perhaps he didn’t seem like a threat to them initially and let him off easy. And here he was, only 4 years later, literally testing the North Korean’s patience, intimidating them, not afraid of bombarding them with harsh criticism.

After the talk show ended, Taeyong slowly mixed in the crowd and left the studio, he didn’t want to be the first one to rush out ‘cause that would seem suspicious. He dispersed and waited next to the building, under shadows cast by the old trees planted next to it.

[febreeze127]: Yuta I need you to delete security footage from today at the SBS studio ASAP!   9:01 pm

[YakisobaPrince]: Aight! Np already on it. But why doe??    9:01 pm

[febreeze127]: They just registered my fake name for the live audience thing.   9:01 pm

[YakisobaPrince]: oh……..     9:01 pm

[YakisobaPrince]: weird they never do that usually.    9:01 pm

Taeyong liked how Yuta was fast at almost everything. He was smart enough to quickly answer questions and solve problems. But at the same time, he was quick to realize how dumb he can be too. He must have already mapped out the possibilities that Taeyong thought of earlier, he didn’t even have to explain.

[YakisobaPrince]: well if the police did search you up, they’d only find my ex.   9:02 pm

[YakisobaPrince]: yes I stole his identity and gave it to you don’t fret it’s no big deal    9:02 pm

[YakisobaPrince]: If the police did contact him tho, maybe I cud convince him somehow ;))))   9:02 pm

[YakisobaPrince]:  ;))))))))696969 8===D :3   9:02 pm

[febreeze127]: convince him to do what?    9:02 pm

[YakisobaPrince]: idk. Like get plastic surgery to look like you. I mean it’s a win-win situation, coz you look B-E-A UUUU TIFUL, he wud thank me for that later. But he is also still good looking now not that im saying he’s ugly or anything lolx     9:03 pm

[febreeze127]: Leave it now. Just delete today’s security footage. That’s the only way to dissolve this mess.

[YakisobaPrince]:  Already done :DDD good work febreeze

[febreeze127]: ….

 

[febreeze127 logged off]

The crowded started stirring and this alerted Taeyong once again. He watched him get swallowed up by the crowd and girls objectifying him with hungry eyes. He really was a big hit with the ladies. Taeyong can’t blame them though. With a bit of studio makeup touch-ups, he really looked magnificent, almost like a prince. A damaged one though, with the shit he’s probably seen and been through. He readied his camera and took a couple of pictures of Jaehyun being a stud. As he watched his retreating figure, Taeyong hummed happily, “Goooodnight~~~Mister Jung Yoonoh~ Have lots of sweet dreams!~ I want your final dreams to be only sweet and pretty just like yourself”, he said that while going through the pictures on the digital camera, with a plastered smile on his face. It was the creepiest Taeyong has ever been. 


	6. Be wary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a vv short chapter...   
> vv dialogue based too

**Be wary**

* * *

 

It was a normal public holiday the next day, that meant Jaehyun could finally sleep in. After waking around noon, he took this chance to play some English tunes around the house, that Johnny made him listen and like and make some food for himself in the process. Jaehyun became passionate about cooking. He would often try out new recipes every week and experiment with flavors in his spare time. This time he was testing out a meat with mushroom Korean recipe, while music echoed through his home. ‘Yeri would love this. I should take some over, she loves braised short ribs.’ Jaehyun thought after tasting his final creations.

After packing up some food, Jaehyun decided to pay a visit to his sister who was 5 years older to him and currently living with her fiancé. Even though they both are close, Jaehyun hasn’t spoken to her in a while now. With her being busy with her job and engagement, and he also has in own thing now. Adulthood. Sheesh. He owes a lot to her though, she is one of the most important people in his life. In fact, this very convenient studio flat that Jaehyun resides in, is all thanks to her. Usually it would be a hassle trying to find a place to live in Seoul, but Yeri worked in real estates and managed to find a good place for her younger brother. Jaehyun soon takes leave and heads out.

 

“YOONOH!!!!” Yeri jumps and crushing Jaehyun’s ribs in the process.

“S-surprise” Jaehyun gasps weakly. Yeri lets go and eyes the plastic bag Jaehyun was carrying.

“WHAT’S THIS?” She says excitedly.

“I made braised short ribs today. Thought you should also try it. By the way is Doyoung hyung home?”

“Waaa~~ You came all the way too. Thanks, Yoonoh. Yeah, Doyoungie is inside. Come in!”

When he entered, he saw Doyoung lounging in the living room reading something.

“Doyoungie hyung~~”

Doyoung finally noticed Jaehyun’s presence and put his reading material aside. “Hey Jaehyun-ah. Nice of you to visit!” Doyoung said with his gummy smile. “So what brings the brat here today?” he says teasingly.

“Actually I bought some braised short ribs for yall, but it sounds like you don’t want any”

“Ahahahah no no no, I cannot pass up that”

“How are you guys?”

“We’re good. Oh, we saw your talk show last night.”

“Oh really? What do you think?”

Yeri silently took the braised ribs to the kitchen to prepare servings and avoid the conversation.

“I only watched it actually, Yeri was…”

“It’s okay hyung. I understand.” Jaehyun says with an understanding smile, knowing his sister doesn’t like talking about the past. She has PTSD because she had suffered a bit more comparatively.

“You did well. You were confident and mesmerizing. Jaehyun-ah you should be a TV personality. Seriously! You also looked incredible! It’s a good choice taking media.”

“Thanks, hyung”

“But Jaehyun-ah, you should be more careful. You know how dangerous it is, like what you’re doing, it’s a bit reckless. And not to mention, risky.”

“Hyung, I haven’t gone public in ages now, nothing has happened and I don’t have any more planned anyway,”

“If you say so, just keep a low-profile for now. Yeri and I worry a lot for your sake, you have no clue. Even Taeil.” Doyoung says with a warm smile.

“Hyung how is he?”

“The usual Taeil. It’s always busy back at the station. How’s University?”

“Just started the third year recently, It’s harder but I’m keeping up”

“WAAAAAAA~~” Yeri voice entered the living room, holding a plate of Jaehyun’s latest handiwork and a pair of chopsticks. “THIS IS SO GOOD YOONOH!! DOYOUNGIE TRY THIS!!!”

 

After an hour and a half of catching up with them, Jaehyun heads back to his place. He takes the stairs to the last floor and unexpectedly finds someone waiting by his door.

“Taeil hyung?!”

“Jaehyun-ah! So you were out.”

“Yeah, I just came back from Yeri’s place. Hyung how long did you wait here for?” Jaehyun asked while simultaneously unlocking his door.

“Not too long. Maybe 3-5 minutes. I was about to call. I was in the area and thought I should stop by and say hello.”

“Aw hyung. You check on me like every month anyways but you always use that same excuse.”

“What excuse?”

“’The “I was in the area” one.”

“Aish~ but I realy was. Your area has good food joints.”

“Yeah that’s true. Hyung do you want to try some braised short ribs I made today?”

“Now this is the real reason why I stop by to say hello” Taeil claims while entering Jaehyun’s room and sits on his sofa. Jaehyun joins him with a plate of food. “Hyung, what do you want to drink?”

“You know this would taste great with beer.”

“Gotcha~” Jaehyun smiles, feeling good that the police officer is starting to get laid back. Taeil is usually uptight. He grabs two cold cans and ‘cracks it open with the boys’, or just one guy in his case. Lame. Meme not applicable here. When did Jaehyun get sucked up in these internet trends?

“Thank you Jaeyhyun-ah. These taste great!”

“Glad you like it hyung”

“Also I watched TV last night”

“Aigooo hyung~ don’t worry. Doyoung hyung already lectured me about it”

“I’ll lecture you again. Jaehyun there are so many bad people out there. And since you are retaliating against the North, they can send someone after you. You can never know.”

‘’it’s okay hyung I’ll be more careful now. I’ll inform you if I sense something fishy. Besides I don’t have any more public appearances planned, so you can calm down’’

“Okay but if you have any more upcoming, inform me beforehand. I would really appreciate it.”

Normally Jaehyun would get annoyed with the amount of nagging he gets, but he could never get mad, literally everyone who nagged him, only meant they cared. Taeil was almost like his guardian parent. When he arrived here to South Korea, Taeil handled his and Yeri’s case. Through his guidance and advice, Jaehyun and Yeri managed to get through so many formalities and legalities. With his help, they got South Korean passports, citizenship and basic right to live here. Since Taeil was older and more experienced in the legal aspects of this world, he helped Jaehyun change his name and apply to a good university, even though he lacked certain primary documents. He also went as far as to get Jaehyun a part time job as an intern in the SBS national TV station. Since Taeil wasn’t his official guardian or anything, Jaehyun and Yeri could not stay here unless they earned for themselves. Yeri managed fine because she was older, but it was hard to find steady placement for Jaehyun since he was still young to work. He also owes a lot to Taeil hyung, it wasn’t in his job description to help them out this much, all he was required to do was negotiate with the embassy, but he went beyond that anyway. It’s through him Yeri met Doyoung too. Least to say, Taeil is a major part of his life.

“Say Jae, did you have a friend or someone visiting you recently?”

“No. Why?”

“Huh. No its nothing.”

Jaehyun just dismissed that and continued eating with him. Soon Taeil took his leave and Jaehyun decided to spend some time invested in university work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im sorry i made doyoung hetero  
> dw hetero relationships arent the main focus anyway  
> also next chapter might be short coz im dealing with uni n stuff


	7. Trial error

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maybe i shud make my chapters shorted from now on?

**Trial Error**

* * *

 

Taeyong waited outside Jaehyun’s house today, it was somewhere nearing late morning, where the streets were less packed and the parks were more crowded. He was well aware that it was a holiday and stalking Jaehyun might be a waste if the boy wasn’t going to go anywhere. Nevertheless, Taeyong still hung out for a bit, until he got bored and decided to go the shop nearby and buy some hair color. It was a spontaneous decision that Taeyong made while waiting and contemplating how difficult it was not to attract attention with his silver hair. ‘Black or brown?’ This wasn’t supposed to be a head cracking choice that took so much time, but Taeyong was sort of particular about his hair. ‘Well this is the time to think about styling my hair now is it.’ In the end, he went we the darkest shade of brown that would look black mostly but in the right lighting, shows a tinge of brown.

He went back to his waiting spot which was a small café nearly facing the entrance of Jaehyun’s building and started going through his phone. He ordered a chocolate Frappuccino with extra sugar while going through his gallery. His recent picture is of Jaehyun’s student ID. ‘Media and criminology major… well isn’t that something.’ Taeyong really didn’t know what to think about that since he never attended college after secondary schooling. He simply forwarded the picture to Yuta and waited.

After a moment of silence, “DING!” Taeyong looked up his phone while sipping on his Frappuccino.

[Yakisoba prince]: I admitted you in his university. You aren’t registered or anything, I just made a fake student card for you under the name Ji Hansol as a dance major. You’ll have access to enter the premises and no one can question you :DDD   11: 22 am

[febreeze127]: When can I get it?  11:22 am

[Yakisoba prince]: Since everything is closed today, pick it up tomorrow at uni only.   11:22 am

[febreeze127]: great  11:22 am

[febreeze127 has logged off]

Just as the ice cubes have melted in his coffee, Taeyong was about to head home resigning to the fact that Jaehyun might not actually leave the house today, only to be surprised at the familiar crown of black hair in a dark maroon sweater and black torn skinny jeans. Taeyong pays his bill and discreetly follows Jaehyun through the train ride to another place that Taeyong hasn’t been yet.

Taeyong waits till Jaehyun got onto the lift and sees which floor he gets off on. ‘2nd’. Taeyong took the stairs and reached to the 2nd floor but was still pretty much in the stairwell. He could a muffle of noises and stayed still to decipher it. He heard a shrill female voice exclaiming ‘Yoonoh’ and the rest all was plain short conversation until they went through the door.

Taeyong immediately concluded that this must be his sister’s residence. Everyone seems to call him Jaehyun but not her. He doesn’t know much about his sister since she wasn’t the target but he searches her up anyway on his phone and goes to every site that might contain any information about her. Estates. 27 years old. Engaged to a police officer. Okay, she could be a potential threat and Taeyong should stay wary of her. He figured this little family visit would take a long time and decides to head back to Jaehyun’s house. This seems like the perfect opportunity for him to infiltrate his home when Jaehyun wasn’t there. He makes his trip back and this time he makes no attempt to waste time hiding his hair. Jaehyun’s building is rather old. It contained single studio flats on each floor and only had stairs. It lacked balconies, security and a rooftop. It was probably very cheap and perfect for college students.

Taeyong wore a plain loose gray long sleeved top, which seemed too big for his small frame and black skinny jeans with his Adidas superstars. Taeyong didn’t feel the need to cover up fully ‘cause since the time Taeyong had started stalking Jaehyun’s home, no one has ever visited him. Makes him wonder if Jaehyun has any friends, because if he doesn’t, then that’s good for Taeyong. Fewer friends, fewer people will be questioned and his cover won’t be blown. He knows Jaehyun lived on the last floor, 13th. ‘Fuck how on earth does he climb these every day? He must be seriously fit if he kept doing this for 4 continuous years.’ Taeyong grimaced when he was somewhere between the 5th and 6th floor.

As he slowly walked up till the 12th floor, Taeyong’s legs started to ache but he also simultaneously prepared his tools for lock picking. Checking on the doors here, all he needed was a bobby pin bent a particular shape. Taeyong reached his desired floor but stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed someone waiting in front of Jaehyun’s door. ‘Shit’, Taeyong quickly turned his back and was about to descend the stairs until the stranger interrupted him, “Excuse me? Are you here for something?”

Taeyong quickly responded making his voice sounds much deeper than it actually is, “Urm… No wrong floor” and quickly sprints down the stairs. He bails the scene, fast. He doesn’t know if this is a panic response or what, but his mind is only set on fleeing the building and go back to his basement. Mission infiltration. Fail. But he managed to stay on the safe side because whoever that stranger was, he only saw his back and hair. He managed to save face but started mentally beating himself up for not taking precautions and being too careless. Taeyong decides to take a cab home, too impatient to be waiting on a train. He runs in a particular direction, completely oblivious to the fact that he ran past the boy in dark maroon sweater. The Said boy stopped on his path as he noticed the other with gorgeous platinum hair run past him. Jaehyun turned on his spot and watched the hurried boy’s back as he was soon going to be out of sight. He didn’t get a chance to properly see his face but he was more curious about his hair. Back in North Korea, no one had crazy hair colours, everyone had to cut their hair to a limited range of styles approved by the government. Now he only saw Kpop idols with chic hairstyles on TV, it was rare for him to meet some in real life with animated hairdos. A small part of him also wondered why that guy would be in such a hurry especially on a holiday. ‘Late for a date? A gig? Maybe I should try dying my hair too.’ Jaehyun thought and continued his way back home.

 

Steam fogged up the glass and a hand quick to wipe some of it off, only to find a brunette staring back on to himself. Upon arrival, Taeyong dyed his hair and in the meantime, jotted down information from today in his ‘Yoonoh’s’ file. He exited the shower, allowing the steamy air to escape with him. He had instant noodles for dinner and then laid on his bed, thinking. ‘I wonder what Yoonoh is doing now…’ endless possibilities on his mind, it was like Taeyong knew the boy all too well to predict his manners and nature, even without meeting him. Hë felt obsessive. He went on thinking for nearly an hour until he retired to sleep.


	8. Fated(?) Encounters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm kinda unhappy with the way I wrote this chapter, but I was stress writing lol. It was either this or crying under my blankets in stress so yeah haha  
> I'm moving to Canada in a week and did:) not :) pack :) aka stressed coz I did this to myself lolol procrastination station woot woooot

** Fated(?) Encounters **

* * *

 

 

Class went slow today. Jaehyun tried his hardest staying attentive. Well, at least he didn’t sleep. Or did he? Shi, he can’t remember what was taught just now. Did he really sleep with his eyes open? ‘Can I really do that?’ class was dismissed and Jaehyun turned to Johnny to ask him what just happened.

“Hey Johnny. What was professor on about in the last 15 minutes?”

“Jaehyun, aren't you usually the one who pays attention in class, what happened today?” Johnny replied,

“I don’t know what wrong with me today. I just couldn’t pay attention.”

“It’s chill. He was talking about interpretations and analysis of cases involving children subjected to harsh conditions. Something about how that and rate of crime is proportional in today’s world. It’s in the textbook if you read it.”

“Thanks. You’re free now right?”

“Yeah but I have to meet up with someone, it’s like a coffee date”

“Oh great! So you’re ditching me then?” Jaehyun smirks and teases,

“Dude, if you saw who I was meeting with, you’d give me your blessings instead of this guilt” Johnny boasted with a smile. He looked very happy, for once more than usual.

“Who is it?”

“Ten”

“Wait, seriously? The Thai guy?”

“He like the first guy I’m seeing. I never felt this way before for a dude. He’s just too cute.”

“Yeah, I’m a bit surprised as well…”

“Surprised at my newly profound bi-sexuality?” Johnny says with a cocked eyebrow and a growing grin.

 “Surprised a great dancer like Ten agreed on a date with you.” Jaehyun snorts.

“Don’t be an ass Jeffery! I’m actually kind of nervous right now.” Johnny whines like a child.

“Hahaha just be yourself man, good luck though.” Jaehyun decides not to tease Johnny any further, knowing how serious he was, especially when he uses his English given name. Though it's supposed to be the other way around, if Johnny wants to be dead serious, he would just use 'Yoonoh' instead. 

“Yeah, by the way, what will you do now?” Johnny queries while picking up his bag and strapping it over to his shoulders.

“Jeffery is freeee, Jeffery does not have Master Johnny anymore. Jeffery is a free elf now!” Jaehyun replies stretching his arms above his head. Yeap! Still not done teasing.

“Ah Jaehyun-ssi. That doesn’t even apply! I haven’t given you my sock yet” Johnny bends down to take his shoe off, but Jaehyun stops him midway.

“Ew man I don’t want your stinky socks. Anyway I was thinking to go to the library, read that chapter and catch up what I missed”

“Wise choice my elf, make master proud”

“Okay stop with that or else I’ll go up to Ten and tell him about the time you were paranoid and convinced your parrot was plotting your murder. And you kept trying to sleep over at my place cause you were ‘afraid’”

“BUCKY KEPT ON SAYING “I WILL KILL YOU IN YOUR SLEEP” TO ME!!!!” Johnny screeched, eyes widen with actual terror that makes Jaehyun facepalm himself.

“That’s what you get for playing an episode of AHS out loud”

“Hey man, if you were in my place, you would shit yourself too.”

“Yeah I’m sure I would have negotiated with Bucky in my parrot voice and come to terms with him first, without having to bother my friends. Anyway, let’s go!” then Jaehyun broke out with his impersonation of ‘Johnny impersonating his parrot’, and dramatically changed his voice to sound like a one, “Don’t want to delay your date” he squaked.(Impersonation inception)

“Humph you wouldn’t even get the chance to bother your friends if you’re already dead parrot meat!” Johnny scoffed.

Jaehyun chuckled at that and left the hall with Johnny till they parted ways in the hallway. They were the few last ones to leave and there was almost no one in sight. Jaehyun was now standing in an empty corridor heading towards the university library.

 

“Tock, tock, tock” the sound of footsteps resonated behind Jaehyun. Out of curiosity, he turned back to see who it could be. No one. Silence. Weird. Must have gone somewhere else then. He continued for a while until that same sounds of footsteps were heard except it sounded like it was running towards him. He quickly turned instinctively on his heel to only face the same view he saw the last time. No one. Coupled with a heavy silence. Jaehyun was getting anxious. There wasn’t anyone else but him in this corridor. He slowly resumed his walk, at a slower pace this time, but after a few seconds later, he immediately spun on his foot and whipped his head back to catch anyone possibly following. Again no one. As he was staring into the distant corridor and was about to resume his journey,"CRASH!". A loud crash sounded the halls. Jaehyun quickly sprinted towards the source of the sound and wanted to see for himself. He turned around the corner, looked all ways, nothing. No sign of anyone or anything that could have fallen. But Jaehyun knew better than let his guard down. He felt it. His 7th sense felt someone looking at him. he felt uncomfortable, to say the least. He inspected his surroundings, hoping to find a soul to prove his senses right. The last thing Jaehyun wants is to believe in ghosts, which he doesn't and won't, no matter how many AHS seasons he watches with Johnny. With that in mind, after a fruitless search, Jaehyun makes a run to the library, hoping whoever was behind him, didn’t get to the library yet. He got in and managed to shut the door behind. He was panting and looked around the library. 'Was it always this empty?' The receptionist also was absent. ‘Where is everybody?’ Jaehyun couldn’t help but feel extremely eerie. Like he was being followed in a horror movie. There was always at least someone here, maybe two or three studious students and the receptionist is always there no matter what! Now the library was mostly dim, sparse day light coming in through the large windows. He switched on the lights and made a quick scan through the library. For the first time, he had seen it this deserted. He eyed the door for a while, waiting patiently for someone to arrive or linger outside, few minutes of inactiveness and Jaehyun decided to sit by one of the tables facing the door. He takes out his heavy text book out and begins reading his source material. After finishing an entire page, “Tap, tap, tap” echoed throughout the library and Jaehyun quickly stood up, fear creeping up on him. This time the tapping sound did not stop but kept going ominously. His heart started to race, but he wanted to get to the bottom of this. He followed the sounds to the other end of the library, to the table located in the darkest corner with shelves clustered more closely together, creating a blind spot.

A boy in a plain black tank top, legs stretched and leaning against the table. His back was facing Jaehyun while he seemed busy jamming to music with his earphones on. He was using his index finger to rhythmically tap on the wooden table, being completely oblivious of Jaehyun’s presence behind him. His head was bobbing with the music and he kept going that way.

Jaehyun felt like an idiot, all this apprehension built up was for nothing. He wouldn’t have spotted this guy before that’s for sure, based on where he was sitting, it was almost perfectly hidden by countless book shelves, potted plants, and poor lighting. He approached the male slowly without having to startle him and gently touched his shoulder. The boy looked around from where he was sitting and took off his earphones. He looked startled a bit as Jaehyun assumes. He was just about to speak when the words got caught in his throat. He didn't expect the overwhelming beauty he was now facing. 

Big doe eyes, perfectly planed cheekbones, sharp edged jawline, petite nose, cupid pink lips and long black hair. Jaehyun went speechless gawking at the ethereal face. ‘What the hell is he a model? How can someone look this enchanting?!’ Jaehyun was stuttering like an idiot. Mouth opening and closing but no coherent sentences forming. The boy let out an amused giggle and said, “I am sorry, did I disturb you?” showing his canines. Jaehyun was dumb folded, “N- No. I was just surprised because I thought I was the only one here.”

He had a deep, unusual, cute, nasalic voice, something Jaehyun never heard so much before, it felt really unique. The boy spoke freely as if he knew Jaehyun for a long time, like old friends would, “So did I. I don’t have class now so I thought I would listen to some music. And the library was also empty so I thought I'd sit here.”

“Oh- Um, I never saw you before, are you a freshman?”

“Yeah, I'm a dance major”

‘That explains it’ guys like him would usually be extremely popular here around now. Like how Ten is. But I guess he just joined.

“My name is Jaehyun. I’m a third year in media and criminology. And you?”

“Taeyong! Nice to meet you!” He shakes Jaehyun’s hand like an excited little child. What a strange guy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me and my friends have a tradition of watching AHS and worshipping Evan Peters together so i thought giving JohnJae the same thing going would be cute.


	9. Trap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A vv small chapter coz i didnt get time to write much, also no pic coz i didn't have time to make them

**Trap**

* * *

****

Taeyong collected his student ID at the counter, it was similar to his other fake ID except all it stated was his majors and University name. If he had to show this to students, he’ll have to identify as Ji Hansol. He made sure to use this ID only when needed, which is the entry point of the campus. If someone tries to ask for proof which is unlikely, he’ll have to find his own way to weasel around that.

He was now in the building, early hours of dawn already passing by and Taeyong wonders where Jaehyun could possibly be. He soon finds out the criminology class was being taught from 9 am for one hour. Taeyong kills time by wandering about the campus and buildings, learning the frame structure and basic map of the whole place. He also attempts to memorise some staff names related to his course just in case. This will be the only learning he’ll do in a university ironically. Soon more people gather around signalling dismissal time and now is Taeyong’s chance to ‘bump’ into his valuable fortune. But he has trouble finding his lecture hall until it got less clustered as time passed and he finally found it. He was able to spot two of them, Jaehyun and someone else chatting up before leaving the hall. Not wanting to be caught by the unknown boy, although he has seen him on Jaehyun’s Facebook profile a couple of times. ‘Was this Johnny? Seo Johnny, I think?’ He’ll confirm that later, for now, he ran through the corridor and hid by the corner, enabling him to peek his head out to look if he wants. He patiently waits till he hears a familiar voice.

“I’ll meet you next class, okay?”

“Yeah. Have fun on your coffee date!”

“Gotcha, have fun in the library. see ya jeffery!”

‘Jeffery?’ Taeyong wonders until he is found frozen like a statue when Johnny’s body emerges through, however, he doesn’t turn around the corner Taeyong is at but rather the opposite one. The corridor was in a ‘T’ shape and Taeyong lets a sigh of relief when Johnny goes left and not right. He eyes Johnny for a while till he is out of sight. It’s his luck that nobody is there or else he would come off as suspicious. He peeks his heads to check if Jaehyun is still there but it seems like the other boy has gone the other direction navigating his way through a labyrinth of halls.

Taeyong walks far behind Jaehyun. However, his footsteps become too apparent in the strong silence, Taeyong is forced to hide by a door frame when Jaehyun takes notice. He not sure why he hides as he could pose off another student going the same way, but Taeyong’s body reacted instinctively. The moment Jaehyun continued, Taeyong makes a run to escape into another corridor opening which was between Jaehyun and his hiding spot. Taeyong runs but stops momentarily to listen for footsteps coming in his direction. Silence, which probably meant Jaehyun is just not moving. He slowly tip toes his way backwards when he stumbles on the janitor’s cart. In lightning speed, Taeyong picks the cart upright and pushes it to closest emergency exit when he hears running footsteps. He goes through the emergency door with the cart and this leads him outside where he sees many students lounging around in the sun. He runs up to a short, thin boy with black glasses and piercings with a short undercut hairdo. “Excuse me, where is the library??” Taeyong pants. In a weird Korean accent that foreigners usually have, the boy replied, “Oh there are two entrances, the main one is from outside and its closer. Just take a round in this building and you’ll see white stairs and big doors.” “Thank you.” And Taeyong sprints.

Taeyong barges in the library and there is no sight of Jaehyun. There are quite a few people and he thought about how good it would be if none of them was here. He goes up the receptionist and thinks of ways to convince her to move or rather even help him clear the library. It was an old lady sitting behind a high rise desk, busy tapping away on her computer, too distracted to notice Taeyong who had snuck up behind her now.

Taeyong stood there, thinking for nearly a minute when he pulled out a small bottle of chloroform from his back pocket and a handkerchief. He silently damped the cloth and stealthily moved closer to the woman. He quickly grabbed her mouth shut with his hand from behind and covered her nose with the handkerchief. Considering her age, the woman struggled less and was very soon unconscious. She would be out cold for a couple of hours and Taeyong had to make sure there weren't any security cameras here so he could tell Yuta if there were. He rolled the receptionist’s body under her table and went towards the light switches to turn them off. This action brought the attention of the five other people who were present in the library towards Taeyong.

“Sorry guys, the receptionist has asked me to inform you that the library is being temporarily closed for now due to a problem that is being attended to at the moment.” Taeyong announced with a feigned sincere look on his face.

“Where is Mrs Eung?” One of the girls asked confused.

“She went to meet with the people who are taking care of this situation. So I’ll need everybody to please clear out the main door.”

“What situation? What is the problem?” another boy perked up with his hand folded and a slight frown on his head and Taeyong was seriously getting frustrated because he was running out of time.

“… Rat infestation…”

Within several moments, the library was clear and Taeyong sat in the farthest spot he could find. He put on his earphones but wasn’t playing any music, instead he was listening to Jaehyun’s arrival and watched his moves from the reflection on his dark screened phone. When he sees Jaehyun ease up and sitting, he decided to get his attention. ‘This is it.’

 


	10. Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I got so lazy with chapter names lol

**Red**

* * *

 

****

 

Taeyong didn’t know what came over him but he wasn’t himself when he shook hands with Jaehyun. Excitement took over every cell in his body, he couldn’t wait till his hands were tainted with Jaehyun’s blood. He then quickly came back to his normal composed reserved self.

“It’s usually weird for the library to be this empty,” Jaehyun spoke,

“Really?”

“Yeah…”

An awkward silence took over for a bit and Taeyong had to think fast and say something.

“Umm, could you show me around campus?”

“Uh, yeah, okay, sure!” Jaehyun replied

They soon made it out the library and were working around the halls. Jaehyun introduced him to some places and Taeyong was being unreasonably quiet. This time Jaehyun made an attempt to talk.

“So, Taeyong-ah, how old are you?”

“24”

“Oh! Sorry Hyung, I assumed you were younger to me ‘cause you were first year. I’m really sorry”

“It’s okay”

“I should have known anyone at any age after high school can join University. I myself joined late too. I’m 22 by the way.”

Jaehyun now was wondering where that overly excited boy he met at the beginning is. Even if that spark lasted for mere seconds, he initially spoke with much confidence like they were long term friends. But now all he got were curt, short answers. He thinks Taeyong maybe got shy or something. Either way, it wasn’t really helping the ambience at all. He gave off a very cold aura. His stoic expression and intense gaze felt very intimidating, almost unapproachable. Though for some reason, Jaehyun couldn’t peel away from him. Least to say he was confused and at the same time entranced by the guy.

“In my defence Hyung, you look really young!” Jaehyun tries again,

Taeyong chuckles, he didn’t expect Jaehyun to say something like that. Jaehyun, on the other hand, was in for another surprise. That cute nasally laugh. It wasn’t even a big laughter but why did Taeyong’s laugh remind him of a sea lion? Jaehyun shook his head slightly to dispel the thought. 

They now reached outside, in the grassy green areas of campus, surrounding them by trees.

“So Hyung, how’s dance here?”

“It’s good”

“Oh Hyung, have you met Ten yet?”

“No”

“Oh. Hyung you should have by now. He’s the best dancer of this University. He’s senior here but he gets along with everybody”

Taeyong mentally notes this person in his head. “I don’t get around too much” he replies looking down.

“Hyung that’s fine. Are you shy?”

Taeyong looks up to him to meet his eyes. “Uh… I don’t know”

“Surely you can’t be shy if I asked you to show me some of your 'moves',” Jaehyun says while doing the arm wave and lastly, winks at Taeyong.

Jaehyun got goofy now and Taeyong was getting more and more speechless learning this new side of him.

“Uh, what should I show you?” Taeyong was good with his body when it came to dancing, the whole reason why Yuta chose this for him, was because he had lived long enough with Taeyong to know his capabilities. He was pretty good in dancing and other things like, cleaning, rapping, modelling, killing, cooking and more. He puts Taeyong on a pedestal of invincibility and is convinced that if Taeyong wasn’t a mercenary, he would still be pretty well off doing anything else.

Right now, Taeyong was clueless. None of his ‘moves’ came to mind as he was put on the spot. Jaehyun sensed his dilemma and whipped out his phone from his pocket. He opened the YouTube app and typed in ‘Hyuna Red’. He tilted the screen so both of them could see. Taeyong watched the racy dance moves intently. Jaehyun only plays the chorus part.

“Hyung, do this”

Taeyong just stares at him dumbly. “YAH!!! Go easy on me!!” Taeyong whines,

Jaehyun finds it funny. “Ok try this one then” He plays a dance clip from Hyuna’s colour pop music video and stops.

“That’s hard”

“You don-”

“I’ll do the first one”

Jaehyun cannot believe his ears. He thought he wasn’t going to get anything from the elder. Another pleasant surprise. He was really about to let the other off the hook. He watches Taeyong re watch Hyuna’s red mv and prep himself before Jaehyun could play the music.

“Okay I’m ready. Play.”

Jaehyun plays the suggestive music and Taeyong, who looks so focused, flawlessly does the red choreography, just like Hyuna noona in the video. He moves are smooth, he has Jaehyun convinced that this dance is easy enough for himself too. After all, he makes it look so easy!!!

“So, do I pass?”

“Hyung, you are definitely a dancer! That was great. I’m so happy you danced for me. Especially to a song about red monkey butts”

Taeyong bursts out laughing hard and that in turn make Jaehyun giggle as well. Seriously why does his laughter remind him of a cute sea lion short on breath? It's official, Taeyong has the cutest laugh in this world. Maybe Jaehyun was being too over the top since he only met the guy, but his laughter will be something he can never forget. He notices the way Taeyong mouth largens and his futile attempt to hide his mouth with his hand while he chokes on air, making laughing sounds.

After catching his breath, “”YAH!!! That was only a demo” Taeyong says, all flustered and hits Jaehyun’s shoulder playfully.

“Still! It was very good!” They both were smiley now, slowly getting comfortable. “Ahh Hyung. I have class now. I’ll see you around?” Jaehyun says while looking at this wristwatch.

Taeyong’s smiley face saddens a bit, Jaehyun notices, but he still purses his lips to smile. “Yeah”


End file.
